Recount likely in Miami Beach mayoral election

@cveiga

Miami Beach’s mayoral election appears to be headed to an automatic recount — by a very narrow margin.

Philip Levine needed just more than 50.5 percent of the vote to win the mayorship outright and be sure that he has avoided a runoff election, according to his election attorney. Instead, with all precincts reporting, he garnered 50.48 percent of the vote.

"This is the most humbling night of my entire life," Levine told a crowd of supporters Tuesday night.

Levine’s closest opponent — Michael Góngora, a sitting commissioner — sounded like he was conceding, although he said he wasn’t sure.

"I’m not going anywhere, people. I can’t tell you what the next step will be, but I can tell you Michael Góngora will be there," he told his supporters.

In another election day twist, Mayor Matti Herrera Bower, a popular local pol who has served the city for more than a decade, couldn’t manage an outright win against an inexperienced and little-known challenger: retired banker Joy Malakoff.